A majority of Democrats in Maine and Michigan said the primary process strengthened their party heading into November, according to new polls from The New York Times and Siena University. More than 60 percent of Democrats or independents who lean Democratic in each state said they thought the primary process strengthened the party through vigorous debate. Only about one-quarter said they thought the process exposed divisions and made Democrats weaker.

Beyond the primary battles, the polls hinted at signs of unity emerging around the party’s direction and ideology among Democratic voters nationally and in the battleground states. More than 80 percent of Democrats nationally said they think the party is focused on the right things. Two-thirds of Democrats nationally said they think the party is neither too far to the left nor too far to the right.

Underneath that veneer of harmony, Democratic voters are notably divided over how much to embrace the democratic socialist movement. Nearly four in 10 Democratic voters nationwide said they considered themselves democratic socialists. In Maine, about half of Democrats said they were democratic socialists, and 44 percent said the same in Michigan. The broader idea of socialism was viewed positively by most Democrats.

The split over socialism hints at coming debates within the party, as Democrats look toward what is widely expected to be a crowded and contentious presidential primary race in 2028. Candidates who identify as democratic socialists won a series of primaries this spring and summer.